there will be no flowers this Spring

There will be no flowers this Spring. 
A squirrel is eating all my bulbs.
This squirrel left bulb remains near where I feed the crows.
That is such a jerk move. 

The only thing that could help would be chicken wire all over my garden. 

This is the little free library at one of the churches near my house. It has been looking ratty for a while. It looks like the door and the books are gone. The note is someone asking if it is just a renovation. 

It was hard to find positive news yesterday. The positive news was so tinged with negative - like Ukrainian parents managing to get their children back from Russia. That was great, but it wasn't, because so many parents haven't. Ukraine did great militarily, but we all feel badly for the conscripts. I am hopeful that stress, misery, and economic collapse in Russia will lead to the end of the war. 
----


We have NATO. Russia and friends have the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO). CSTO is falling apart. There was a declaration they were going to sign. Armenia was mad that Russia would not help them against Azerbaijan. Lukashenko began yelling and said they would not help Armenia against Azerbaijan, which is not a CSTO member. This means CSTO is pointless. The head of Armenia was visibly trying to not stand near Putin. Analysts were predicting that the war would reduce Russia's ability to intervene in other states and its influence would wane. It is happening. 

Georgia's economy is going off like gangbusters. After the damage of Covid, they have 112,000 new Russian immigrants. 43,000 came after the invasion, the rest after the mobilization. Their economy is expected to grow by 10% this year. This is triple the expectations in April. 

Armenia is set to surge 11%. 

Estonia plans to remove and destroy 244 Soviet monuments. The government launched its campaign to remove Soviet monuments after the invasion in February. 

There are people in Ukraine who have named boys "Javelin" and girls "Javelina" as a reflection of their gratitude. 

You know how some cities have sister cities? Modesto California has Khmelnytskyi Ukraine. Yesterday Ukrainians thanked Modesto. Modesto sent $75,000 from a fundraiser to pay for emergency generators in hospitals. They also helped get tourniquets, flak jackets, and night-vision goggles. I hope Ukrainian children one day read that they were invaded, their parents and grandparents fought bravely, and the world stood with them.